When Anand first met me to narrate the script of Okka Kshanam I was apprehensive, says Allu Sirish

Sirish plays a common man in the film and like ever normal man, has a love life and wants to get married to his girlfriend.

Allu Sirish’s Oka Kshanam hits the cinema halls today worldwide and the early shows of the film have been receiving positive response from all around. Based on the concept of parallel lives, Oka Kshanam also stars Surbhi, Seerat Kapoor and Avasarala Srinivas. Directed by Vi Anand, the film has caught the attention since the release of the teaser and buzz around the film is quite high. Actor Allu Sirish says that the film will break the boundaries in Telugu cinema and primarily because of the genre. “It is a thriller based on the concept of parallel lives where two couples’ lives are inter-connected. Okka Kshanam is a ‘next-level thriller’ in Telugu cinema. I just simply had to be a part of it,” Sirish was quoted as saying by a report in TOI.

Sirish also reveals that he was not sure initially if he wanted to take up the doing the film, but after a narration by director Vi Anand, he changed his decision. “When Anand first met me to narrate the script, I was apprehensive. But once I started listening, I was hooked 10 minutes in. By the end of the 45-minute narration, I was bowled over. I immediately said yes and asked when we could start shooting. In the 14 months since I signed the film, I have not taken up anything and have travelled just with this film,” Sirish adds further.

Sirish plays a common man in the film and like ever normal man, has a love life and wants to get married to his girlfriend. “He’s a young man, in love, wanting to marry his girlfriend. But how he steps up and stands up to destiny for the sake of love forms the crux of the story. I enjoyed playing Jeeva because Anand let me interpret the character instead of instructing me on how to feel. He even showed me some French films to pick up the intensity of the performances. I’d imagine how I would react and emote if I were Jeeva and tried to enact the same. The rest of the cast did the same. Anand has a great eye for detail and he used every micro expression of the actors to great effect,” Sirish adds.

Director Vi Anand says that the film initially did not shape up with this concept. “I’ve been a huge fan of the sci-fi genre right from my childhood. But Okka Kshanam did not start out as a film exploring ‘parallel life’ at all! It started off as story about two characters finding out about the lives of another couple. While developing these characters I thought, what if I inserted the concept of parallel life into it all? I did and it gave a whole new life, meaning and freshness to the film. The conflicts that arise as a consequence is what the film is now all about,” Anand had said.

“We all believe in the notion that destiny is fixed. Similarly, falling in love isn’t in your control either. So what happens when destiny is pitted against love? Can true love alter destiny? is that even possible, or will it surrender? What happens when two such powerful forces are pitted against each other? That is the conflict point that the narrative explores,” Anand adds further.

Speaking about the characters and the narrative, Anand says,”The script has multiple layers to it and to make such a complex concept relatable to people was not an easy task. Every scene in the film is interrelated. What look like simple and ordinary characters or scenes at first will all have a hidden meaning, which will become apparent only in the end. Every scene, shot and detail has been put in with an intention. The film is going to have a lot of dots that will connect by the end.”